DC Hotel List

[Charles Fisher <charles -at- DATATEL -dot- COM>]

Here's an unofficial list of DC area hotels that I put together.
The Washington Sheraton is at the Woodley Park/Zoo Metro stop on
the red line. For each hotel, I've included how to get to the
Sheraton by metro.

Key: $=less than the Sheraton; $$=about the same; $$$=more

In the District:

  Marriott Courtyard, Dupont Circle ($):  about 3 blocks
  north of the Dupont circle metro (red line), which is one stop away
  from the Woodley Park/Zoo metro stop.

  Washington Hilton and Towers ($$-$$$): across the street from the
  Courtyard; same metro access.

  Embassy Suites ($-$$): Upper NW DC, close to Chevy Chase. Close to
  shopping (Mazza Gallerie and the Pavilion at Chevy Chase). This
  hotel is at the Friendship Heights stop on the red line, which is
  two stops away from the Woodley Park/Zoo metro.

Other DC metro stops close to Woodley: Farragut North (red),
Farragut West (orange/blue), McPherson Square (orange/blue),
Cleveland Park (red), Metro Center (red/orange/blue).

In Maryland:

  Bethesda Holiday Inn ($): About 3 blocks from the Bethesda metro (red
  line), which is three stops away from the Woodley Park/Zoo metro.

  Bethesda Hyatt ($$): At the Bethesda metro.

  Silver Spring Holiday Inn ($): About 3-4 blocks away from the Silver
  Spring Metro (red line), which is 11 stops away from the Woodley
  Park/Zoo metro.

  Best Western College Park ($): Shuttle access to the College Park/
  University of MD metro (green line), which is 12 stops away from the
  Woodley Park/Zoo metro, with a switch from green to red along the way.
  This hotel used to be a motel (doors opened to outside), but part of
  the facility has been inclosed to make a strange-yet-somehow-cool
  atrium area. Some doors still open to the great outdoors, so make
  sure you know what you're getting when you make a reservation here!

Other MD metro stops close to Woodley (all red): Shady Grove, Rockville,
Twinbrook, White Flint, Grosvenor, Medical Center, Takoma Park,
Forest Glen, Wheaton.

In Virginia:

  Marriott Courtyard, Rosslyn ($): About 3-4 blocks from the Rosslyn
  metro (orange line), which is 7 stops away from the Woodley Park/
  Zoo metro, with a switch from orange to red along the way.

  Rosslyn Hyatt ($$): about a block closer to the Rosslyn metro than
  the Rosslyn Courtyard.

  Arlington Holiday Inn at Ballston ($): close to shopping (Ballston
  Common Mall). About two blocks from the Ballston metro (orange line),
  which is 10 stops away from the Woodley Park/Zoo metro, with a switch
  from orange to red along the way. BTW, the STC HQ offices are in an
  office building at the Ballston metro!

Other VA metro stops: Vienna (orange), Dunn Loring (orange), West
and East Falls Church (orange), Virginia Square (orange), Clarendon
(orange), Court House (orange), Crystal City (blue/yellow),
Pentagon City (blue/yellow).

***********

These are only a few hotels in the area. There are many, many, others.
For more information about these or other places, call the hotels
(most have central toll-free reservation lines). Chains like Quality
and Best Western have many area locations; call and ask for ones near
the mentioned metro stops in DC, VA, or MD (cities in VA: Arlington
and Alexandria; cities in MD correspond to metro names). Check out
other sources as well: AAA and similar organizations publish travel
guides for the DC area.

We've had STC chapter meetings at most of the listed hotels. All
have restaurant facilities. The three Holiday Inns listed are very
nice compared to the motel-like ones I knew as a kid: they have
nice rooms, conference facilities, and good restaurants.

Good luck finding a place to stay! Please, please, PLEASE do not
reply to this posting to ask me about specific room rates, because
I DO NOT KNOW! Rates are dynamic, and I don't want to mislead anyone
by giving out incorrect information. Also, this partial listing of
hotels was literally thrown together by me and typed up in about
45 minutes (I'm a slow typer). It is not intended to endorse or
exclude any particular hotel or chain. Any opinions expressed about
these hotels are my own and not STC's.

I encourage you stay in a place that offers access to metro, and to
use the metro to get to the conference. If you rent a car and plan to
drive in to the hotel, be prepared for TRAFFIC FROM HELL (NYC and LA
are the only two cities where traffic is worse than DC). And when (if?)
you make it to the hotel, be prepared to fork over $12 a day to park,
assuming the deck isn't full. My wife went to the Sheraton on a Sunday
afternoon for a meeting a few weeks ago, and she couldn't park in the
deck: it was full due to a FUR SHOW and sale going on at the hotel....

See you at the conference!
--
"There's not much to be said about the period
except that most writers don't reach it soon enough."
  - William Zinsser
========================================================
 Charles Fisher
 President, STC Washington DC Chapter

 Senior Documentation Specialist
 Datatel, Inc.                   (703) 968-4588 (voice)
 4375 Fair Lakes Court             (703) 968-4625 (FAX)
 Fairfax, VA  22033                 charles -at- datatel -dot- com